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Reville, Alma (1899-1982)
 

Writer, Assistant Director, Continuity

Main image of Reville, Alma (1899-1982)

The wife of Alfred Hitchcock, Alma Reville is thought to have been a major influence on his work. Formally listed as a story consultant in the credits of many of his films, she informally advised him on virtually all of his productions, helping him find stories and fine-tuning productions.

She began her career in the British film industry in the early 1920s as editor's assistant and script girl, meeting her future husband at Famous Players-Lasky studio in London. They married in 1926, and though she worked on various British films such as Gracie Fields' first starring vehicle, Sally in Our Alley (1931), and with various directors like Berthold Viertel (The Passing of the Third Floor Back, 1935), and Maurice Elvey (The Water Gipsies, 1932), she increasingly concentrated on her husband's productions.

Hitchcock claimed she was his harshest critic, especially adept at identifying inconsistencies and flaws in his plots and he dedicated his 1979 Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Film Institute to her.

Stephen Shafer, Encyclopedia of British Cinema

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FILM & TV CREDITS

From the BFI's filmographic database

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Selected credits

Thumbnail image of Constant Nymph, The (1928)Constant Nymph, The (1928)

Ivor Novello drama about a composer who leaves his wife for a schoolgirl

Thumbnail image of First Born, The (1928)First Born, The (1928)

Society drama about a politician, his wife and her adopted illegitimate child

Thumbnail image of Juno and the Paycock (1930)Juno and the Paycock (1930)

Hitchcock adaptation of Sean O'Casey's play about Irish nationalism

Thumbnail image of Lodger, The: A Story of the London Fog (1926)Lodger, The: A Story of the London Fog (1926)

Hitchcock's first thriller: a lodger is suspected of murder

Thumbnail image of Murder! (1930)Murder! (1930)

Hitchcock whodunit with a theatrical setting

Thumbnail image of Number Seventeen (1932)Number Seventeen (1932)

Early Hitchcock sound thriller about criminals holed up in a deserted house

Thumbnail image of Pleasure Garden, The (1926)Pleasure Garden, The (1926)

First feature from a new young talent - one Alfred J. Hitchcock

Thumbnail image of Rich and Strange (1931)Rich and Strange (1931)

Hitchcock melodrama about a couple contemplating infidelity on a cruise

Thumbnail image of Skin Game, The (1931)Skin Game, The (1931)

Family rivalry and dark secrets in Hitchcock's play adaptation

Thumbnail image of Waltzes From Vienna (1933)Waltzes From Vienna (1933)

Hitchcock musical comedy (!) about the Viennese waltz king Johann Strauss II

Related collections

Thumbnail image of The Shaping of Alfred HitchcockThe Shaping of Alfred Hitchcock

The early experience of a gifted young filmmaker - before stardom beckoned

Related people and organisations

Thumbnail image of Hitchcock, Alfred (1899-1980)Hitchcock, Alfred (1899-1980)

Director, Writer, Art Director, Actor